How'd You Get That Idea?
by eric-idle-rules
Summary: During Ted's first year of college, Cody goes to visit during his April vacation.


The whole college experience was different, exciting and a lot easier than Ted expected. Of course, it helped that his classes were all Gen Eds and intro levels. No classes on Fridays, three classes every other day, none before 10am, yeah, college was good.

Second semester went just as well as his first, landing him on the Dean's List due to his excellent performance in all his classes. This time around he had even taken a major required class instead of all Gen Eds.

And now he had Cody's visit to look forward to. During Ted's spring break, he went home, because it had been a while since he saw his family. But Cody was still in high school and living with his family all the time. Their families hammered out the details and decided that it would be good for Cody to go out on his own, especially if it was to visit his lifelong best friend.

It was the end of the school day on Friday, the beginning of Cody's April vacation. His flight out was that night, and he couldn't have been more excited. He loved his family and all, but he really just needed to get _away_. And to be spending the next couple of days with Teddy? Really, it couldn't get much better than that.

His mum drove him to the Atlanta airport, dropped him off at the front entrance of the Southwest Airlines, giving him a hug and a kiss before he stepped out of the car and a, "Have a safe flight," before driving off once he grabbed his suitcases, one small one with his clothes and a bigger one housing his blanket and pillow, out of the back.

Heading in through the entrance, boarding pass in hand, Cody checked his suitcase and headed off to security with his carry-on backpack. Going through without issue, he decided to wander through the shops before waiting at his gait.

In one of the shops he picked up a Hershey bar and a water bottle and ate that while he continued to wander. "Shit," he grumbled when he felt his cell phone vibrating against his leg, nearly causing him to drop his chocolate bar. He switched his water bottle to his other arm and dug into his pocket. He took a quick glance at the caller ID and smiled when he saw it was Teddy. Flipping the cover up, he pressed talk and answered, "Hello?"

"Hey, what's up?"

"Just waiting. Flying is such a pain in the ass. Hopefully there won't be many people flying out to Mississippi today so I can get some space on the plane."

"Yeah. How much longer before take off?"

Cody looked around for a clock and noted the time. "About 45 minutes. I'm heading over to the gate now. You will be at the airport when I land, won't you?"

"Of course. Well, my parents will be there, too. They have to pick me up at school then drive me over to the airport, then back to school."

"How come you're living on campus, anyway? Aren't you still in the same city?"

"I am, yeah. But my parents said if I was going to college, I would live there for at least one year to get that 'college experience.' So, you excited to be coming over?"

"Yeah, man! I needed to get away for a bit. Thank fu…" Cody trailed off when he saw a family with two little kids standing near him. "Thank goodness my parents gave this trip their ok."

"Yeah, I know. It'll be nice to have some company that's not my roommate for once."

"I can imagine," Cody agreed as he continued walking down the airport, looking for his flight gate. Once he found it, he took an empty seat. "I'm at the gate now," he said to Ted.

"Awesome. Did you wanna hang up now, then?"

"No! Dude, what else am I supposed to do? I brought a book for the plane ride, but… I like being able to talk to you."

"Even though for the next couple days you'll be talking to me non-stop?"

"You know I have an insatiable need for you."

On the other end of the line, Ted spit out the water he was currently drinking after he nearly choked on it from his laughter at Cody's words. "Nice to know I'm that irresistible."

"Yeah…" The two fell into a comfortable silence, listening to the other breathing. "Hey, I gotta go, they just started lining up for boarding. I guess I'll see you when I get there?"

"Yeah, see you in a couple hours," Ted said, Cody able to hear the smile in his voice.

"Later."

"Bye."

And they both hung up. Cody shoved the rest of his chocolate bar into his mouth and stuck the water bottle into his backpack before lining up with the rest of the people with A boarding passes.

The flight was a fairly quick one, with Cody winding up with a row of seats to himself. While he wasn't exactly able to spread out, it did give him room to breathe. He read some of the way there, falling asleep with the book on his lap halfway through one of the chapters.

He woke up to the sound of the captain saying they were nearing their destination and would begin the descent soon. He sat up and tucked his book into the pouch on the back of the seat in front of him.

Leaving the plane, Cody walked up the ramp and into the airport where Ted was supposed to be waiting. He walked past a set of escalators and grinned when he saw Teddy and his father.

"Hey!" Ted shouted out as he saw Cody approach.

"Hey, what's up?"

"Just been waiting here for you to hurry your ass up."

"I'll be waiting for you two out at the car," Ted Sr. told the two teens. "You can go help Cody with his luggage."

"Ok, Dad."

Together they headed to the luggage carousel, chatting all the way. "How much crap did you bring with you, anyway?"

"I've got two bags."

"Two? Cody, you're here for, like, four days!"

"I had to bring a blanket and a pillow. I mean, if I'm sleeping on the floor, I'm not doing it without a blanket and my own pillow. Unless you just want to share a bed, that way I can try to quench that need for you."

Cody laughed as Ted blushed and muttered, "Shut the fuck up, man."

"Dude, I'm _joking_."

They waited for a good ten minutes before any luggage started coming through, and as each bag passed by, Cody grew more and more paranoid. "I bet they lost my bags. Shit, they probably left my bag of clothes back in Atlanta. Or worse, shipped them off to Vancouver or somewhere on the other side of the continent."

"That'd suck."

"Ted! You're supposed to say, 'Oh, that'd never happen, I'm sure they'll be out in a matter of minutes.' So, how about you try— Hey! There's one of 'em!"

"And that's what you get for being so paranoid. Jeez." Together they walked up to the luggage and Cody hauled his bag off the rack. "Which one's that?" Ted asked.

"My clothes."

"Well, there ya go."

"But unless you _do_ wanna wind up sharing a bed, then you better hope my other bag shows up soon."

"Screw that. You're taking the floor no matter what, bag or no bag."

"What the hell kinda best friend are you?" Cody asked, elbowing Ted in the ribs.

"A shitty one," Ted answered with a smirk.

"Obviously," Cody said, grinning. "Oh, hey, there it is!" he shouted as he saw his bag pass him by. He grabbed that one as well and handed the smaller one to Teddy.

"That's asking a lot out of such a shitty friend."

"Is it?" Cody asked, earning a nod from Ted. "But is it asking _too_ much?"

Ted tilted his head to the side, as if contemplating Cody's question. "Nah." Ted grabbed the bag and the two of them left for the front door where Ted's dad was waiting outside in the car. They hoisted the bags into the back of the SUV then shut the back hatch. Cody walked to the passenger side and opened up the back door, but before he could climb in, Ted said as he slid into his own seat, "You can sit up front if you want."

"Back here is fine."

"So, how was your flight?" Ted Sr. asked as he pulled out of his parking space.

"Uhh, fine. I read a little bit, and I, umm, fell asleep. It's not like it was a long flight, or anything so… Yeah, it wasn't that bad…"

"And how's school going for you?"

"Good."

"Enjoying your classes?"

"For the most part."

"So, you're doing well in all your classes, then?"

"Well, I'm doing real good in history… Glad biology is over, but it's not like chemistry is all that much better. Everything else is good for the most part…"

"Good." He began fiddling with the radio, which had gotten fuzzy as they drove out of the station's range.

"You could at least pretend to enjoy talking to my dad."

"What are you talking about? Your dad's great."

"And that's also why you didn't want to sit next to him up front."

"Dude, I wanted to sit next to you so _we_ could talk."

"He doesn't have rabies."

"I never said he did. So, your roommate is cool with me staying there?"

"Oh, that kid goes home just about every weekend. He won't be back until Sunday night, most likely."

"Yeah, but I am staying longer than that. He does know I'm coming, right?"

"Yeah, of course I told him you were coming, and he's fine with it. When I asked him if it was cool that I was having a friend, he thought you were my girlfriend. Then I was like oh, nah, man, it's a guy and he's been my best friend since I was a toddler… Lenny, my roommate, well, he'd _never_ be down with having a girl stay over. Not that I'd ever have a girl in my room," he added for his father, but it was true, he never _had_ brought a girl to his room. "But, anyway, he's _really_ religious. Sure, I am, I'm going to a Christian college after all, but he's _into it_. He's a pretty cool guy and all, though."

"Cool. Hey, what'll I be doing when you're in class?"

"I'm assuming I can trust you in the room, right? You're not gonna run off and tell everyone the combo to get into my room, or anything like that, will you?"

"No."

"Then you can do whatever you want. Wander the campus, hang out in the dorm or stay in my room… Whatever. If you do leave the building, though, you might be stuck waiting outside for a while until someone that lives there can let you in. Oh, and do _not_ leave the building after 4 without me, since that's when they start checking school IDs, and you don't have one. You'll get a guest pass, but you're not supposed to actually go anywhere without your host, which would be me."

"Got it. So, how much longer until we're there? And is there anywhere I can get some food, because I'm _starving_?"

"Everywhere on campus is closed, and I don't have much to eat in my room… Dad, think we could stop somewhere really quick?"

"Sure, is there any place actually open right now? Anywhere that's not McDonald's?"

Cody looked to Ted, who shrugged. "No idea. Subway, maybe?" Ted suggested as he saw a sign for one coming up. "That work?"

"Yeah," the other two said at the same time.

After a quick stop at Subway, the guys continued their drive over to Mississippi College. It wasn't too much longer until they finally stopped in the parking lot closest to Ted's dorm.

"Thanks for the ride and the food, Mr. DiBiase," Cody said as he and Teddy opened their doors and stepped out of the car. Ted opened the back hatch, handing Cody's bags to him.

"Call me Ted. And it was my pleasure. You two have a great time."

"We will, Dad. Thanks."

"No problem. See you later. One of us will be back to pick you up in a few days, alright, Cody?"

"Sounds good to me."

"See you later, Dad."

"Bye!"

Teddy shut the back hatch and waved to his dad as he drove off. "Come on, let's get inside."

Together they walked around to the front of the building and Ted swiped his ID card to open the door for them. Someone sitting at a table at the entrance stopped them to check the IDs, and Ted signed a guest pass for Cody, which allowed him to stay in Ted's room for a couple days.

"Welcome to college, my friend."

"Awesome. So, we hittin' up any parties tonight?"

"Uh, no. Cody, you're 16. _Someone's_ gonna notice that you look a little _too_ young. Besides the campus is _really_ strict about alcohol. As in it's a dry campus."

"Shiiiit," Cody said, unzipping his bag and pulling out his blanket.

"Yeah. What, you ready to crash already?"

"Nah, just getting my shit ready. Ok, that soda is really getting to me. Where's the bathroom in this place?"

"Follow me," Ted said to him leading him out of the room and down the hall. He pushed open the door and entered the tiled room, containing four stalls and a urinal on each side surrounding the set of stalls. There were six sinks lining the wall, and over in a corner there was a row of four showers.

Cody took it all in, looking utterly unimpressed. "Not much to write home about here, is there?" he asked, watching as one of the sinks dripped water from the faucet one steady drip after another.

"Not at all… It's no better than any of the other dorms here, though… It's all more of the same. So, you gonna take a leak, or not?"

"Yeah, yeah…" Cody muttered as he walked over to the urinal. "You just gonna stand there and watch?" he asked, unzipping his jeans. "You wanna hold it for me, too?"

"Don't be ridiculous."

"Screw you."

"Don't you wish," Ted shot back, earning him an over the shoulder grin from his younger friend. "Hey, watch your aim there, bud."

Once Cody finished, he zipped himself back up and went to wash his hands. Only there was one problem. "There's no soap?"

"Yeah, no soap. They don't like to give us, oh, anything…"

"Well, that sucks."

"Tell me about it." When the door opened, Ted grinned as one of his friends entered. "Oh, hey Pete."

"Hey. You new here?" he asked, obviously to Cody.

"Oh, no. I'm just staying with him," he answered, wiping his hands on his t-shirt.

"Ah, you must be Cody, then. Ted's talked about you before, and mentioned that you were coming to stay." He lowered his voice as he continued, "And be thankful that Lenny's not here, reading his Bible 24/7… He'd probably be going on and on about how what you two are doing is a sin, or some—"

"Woah, back up there. What the two of us are doing? What exactly are Cody and I doing?"

"Aren't you two…?"

"Dude, what gave you that idea?" Ted asked, and Cody was wondering the same thing. Had he been _that_ obvious about his attraction for Ted that this guy had picked up on it as soon as he walked in the door?

"Well, I do have the room right across from the bathroom, and my door was open, so I heard you two talking…"

"Oh, shit, you heard all that?" Cody blurted out. "I was just bullshitting around… We do that a lot…"

"Ok, ok. I got it. Sorry I got the wrong idea…"

"It's alright. No big deal," Ted assured him with a smile.

"Cool…"

"Alright, well, I'll see ya round."

"Yup."

Ted and Cody left the bathroom and headed back to Ted's room. "So, how _exactly_ do you talk about me?" Cody asked, a grin plastered on his face.

"Well, I didn't think it ever gave off _that_ impression."

"Don't lie to me. I'm sure you were telling everyone who'd listen that your sweet little piece of sixteen year old ass was coming up for a couple days and you were getting hard just thinkin' about stickin' your dick inside me."

"You're so crude," Ted said, even though he was grinning at Cody's words. "I don't know, man. Sorry he thought that about you…"

"He thought right, then," Cody mumbled.

Did Ted hear that right? Did he just hear what he thought he heard? "Sorry, I didn't quite catch that. What did you say?"

Cody turned his back to Ted and mumbled once again, "He thought right…"

"Did you say that he thought right?"

"Yes! Yes, ok! He thought right! I didn't tell you because, well, I didn't know how deep this whole Christian thing ran. I mean, it's gotta run pretty deep if you went to a Christian high school and are now going to a Christian college, and you're even contemplating a future in the church." Cody was ranting, just saying anything and everything that came to his mind. That was a nervous habit of his every time he was in a stressful situation. He wound up talking the head off of whoever happened to be in the same room as him. "How the fuck am I even able to compete with the big man upstairs? And, besides, I'm a guy. And that whole church thing, well, they don't take too kindly to my type, now do they? So, Christ, I couldn't fucking outright tell you that I had started to develop a crush on you, could I? No, because I knew that if I—"

All of Cody's talking was cut off as Ted stepped in close and pressed his mouth to Cody's, just a light kiss, but that's what it was. When Ted stepped back, Cody was looking at him in wide eyed surprise. "I had to shut you up somehow," Ted said with a grin.

"A simple 'shut the fuck up,' would have sufficed."

"I think I liked my way better," Ted said, the hope laced through his voice.

"I think I do, too."


End file.
